San Juan Record Classifieds, Events, Businesses In Monticello, San Juan County, Utah

Feb 24, 2010 | 584 views | 0 | 9 | |

Kira Simpson and Eli Beck went head to head for round after round before Simpson finally reclaimed her title as champion of the San Juan School District Spelling Bee. The annual competition was held on February 17 at San Juan High School.

Simpson claimed her fourth district spelling champion title, with Beck finishing second and Jared Ward claiming third place.

It did not take long before Simpson and Beck were the final two spellers in the contest. They then spelled word after word, with scaresley a moment’s hesitation, through scores of rounds. Realizing that the two students were having little trouble with the word list, moderator Chaz DeWitt skipped to more difficult words.

Finally, Beck tripped on the word “rabbinic” and Simpson quickly spelled two difficult words to take the title.

Now eighth grade students, Beck and Simpson have dominated the local spelling bee for several years. Simpson first won the district bee as an eight-year-old fourth grade student. She finished second in the regional contest three times before winning the regional contest last year. As the winner, she participated in the international spelling bee on the East Coast of the United States.

The top three finishers advance to the regional competition, which will be held on March 11 in Green River. The winner once again, will advance to the international competition.

Students from Montezuma Creek Elementary School brought home most of the hardware from the Navajo Nation Spelling Bee.

Champions include Sunshine White for the first grade, Nigel Sam for the second grade, Ramon Oldman for the fourth grade, Bryanna Armstrong for the fifth grade, and Kaylee Hathalee for the sixth grade. Alicia Dixon finished in second place in the third grade.

The champions in the fourth through sixth grade will compete at the regional spelling bee in Tuba City, AZ on March 11.

Seventh grade students who participated in the spelling bee from Monticello High School include Dakota Aitken, Zoe Chadwick, and Sheldon Black.

Representing Monticello Elementary School in the competition are Dallin Redd, Jared Crowley and Andrew Torres.

The San Juan Record welcomes comments on our stories. Please be civil, respectful, focused and humane. Postings are not edited and are the responsibility of the author. You agree not to post comments that are abusive, threatening or obscene. Postings may be removed at the discretion of sjrnews.com